SENIOR MEMBER

The Kalashnikov Concern Modul Boyevoy Distantsionno Upravlyaemiy (MBDU) remote weapon station was unveiled at the Army 2015 international forum in Kubinka near Moscow. Source: Nikolai Novichkov

The Kalashnikov Concern unveiled its first remote weapon station (RWS) dubbed Modul Boyevoy Distantsionno Upravlyaemiy (MBDU) at the Army 2015 international forum held at Kubinka near Moscow.

MBDU can be fitted with one of four available weapons: 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine guns; 30 mm AG-17; or new 40 mm grenade launchers.

It has a two-axis gyro-stabilising device and an automatic target tracking system and can memorise 10 static targets. It has the equivalent of Level III STANAG 4569 armoured protection against 7.62 x 54 mm armour-piercing bullets fired from the SVD sniper rifle or PKM machine gun.

The MBDU's horizontal travel angle is 360°, and the rotating speed is 60° per second. The module is equipped with wide and narrow fields of view cameras, a laser rangefinder, and filters for image-quality enhancement. Its maximum target acquisition distance is 2.5 km.

"The module's development is yet to be finished, but we hope to get the first orders in 2015," Kalashnikov's director general Aleksey Krivoruchko said.

MEMBER

This Kalashnikov gear reminds me of the world war 2 movies that featured the submachine guns of the Japanese soldiers. Atop their sentry posts, the movies would always portray the Japanese sentries to be invulnerable to the shots of the guns below. And when the submachine guns start roaring, the enemies will be chopped down to their size. And with that Kalashnikov having grenade launcher capability, it looks invincible.